Home insurance

[Xavier434]

I'll try to keep this concise. I am looking to purchase my first home which will either be a single family unit or town home in the next 12-18 months. I have done a lot of research in multiple areas of this process in order to be prepared. However, I would like to know as much as I can from those of you with experience owning a home when it comes to choosing the insurance. I know very little about that part. I do know that there are many details which determine the rate I will be paying and I plan to upgrade my home to lower that rate. Examples would be adding storm shutters and making sure that my home isn't too old.


I would appreciate any insight that you may have and especially the types of things that you wish you knew before choosing your first insurance company/plan. Please keep in mind that I live in South Florida so Wind Insurance is a must. I am debating flood insurance though.


Some Questions:

1. First and foremost, which companies would you recommend looking into and why?
2. When talking to a company and reading the policies, what are some key points that I should look for? This includes both positive and negative points.
3. If you currently own a home in South Florida, which company did you go with, how much do you pay, and what does it cover?
4. What are some common mistakes people make when purchasing home insurance?
5. What are some wise questions to ask the insurance company before purchasing the insurance?


I think that will be a good start for this thread. Good links on this subject are welcome too, but I am most interested to hear opinions from those with experience.

 

[The Sauce]

I just watched a special on this. In florida there is some funky new clause they have in some policies, cant remember what it's called. Basically it means that if your house gets blasted by two or more things and you are not covered for any one of them then you = shit out of luck. For instance if you get hit by a tornado and your house gets flooded, blown over and burned to the ground and you have wind and fire coverage but don't have flood protection they can reneg on paying anything. It's major fucked up. Watch out for that one.

 

[waggy]

Originally posted by: Snatchface
I just watched a special on this. In florida there is some funky new clause they have in some policies, cant remember what it's called. Basically it means that if your house gets blasted by two or more things and you are not covered for any one of them then you = shit out of luck. For instance if you get hit by a tornado and your house gets flooded, blown over and burned to the ground and you have wind and fire coverage but don't have flood protection they can reneg on paying anything. It's major fucked up. Watch out for that one.

yeah they are useing it as a way to get out of paying hurrican damage.

 

[Kelemvor]

For Homeowners insurance, make sure you get GUARANTEED Replacement. Otherwise as the house increases in value over time, you aren't guaranteed to get the full replacement. Otherwise you have to keep the insurance company updated every year with the new assessed value of the house so they can modify your policy.

As for who to go with, Try to get your car, house, term life, etc all with one place as you probably get some discounts...

 

[DisgruntledVirus]

Well living in S Florida you may have issues getting a policy. A lot of insurance companies are not issueing renewals on policys on the gulf coast and Florida due to the 2005 (and partially 2004) seasons. Insurance companies are very cautious on their exposure in those areas now. The more "hurricane proof" your home is the better chance it will be. As far as rates I cannot say, and while what Snatchface said is true it isn't a new thing. For example mold damage will most likely not be covered so if you have a water leak (which would be covered under most policies), get it fixed ASAP. Most policies will not cover secondary loss caused by a primary loss. They will cover the primary loss (tree branch put a hole in your roof), but a secondary loss may or may not be covered (i.e. raining in the home due to the hole in the roof).

Best advice I can give you is to talk with agents, and make sure you get coverage for flood (especially in a hurricane prone state). Wind driven water is different then flooding though (read: storm surge), just as a heads up. Once you get your policy you will receive a thick document called the policy jacket. Read it. Cover to cover. It will tell you exactly what is and what is not covered under the policy. For example if you get HIV/AIDs in a car accident it will not be covered (from any of the policies I have ever seen at least).

PS Everybody loves to hate insurance companies but they have to watch their exposure. Many companies went under because of Katrina (the smaller ones), and some others were seriously hit hard from it because they were too exposed in the area. For every person insured in a high risk area (thats you btw), they need at least 2-3 insured in a lower risk area (like the middle of the country states).

Edit: Also make sure to get a policy that will give you the replacement amount, instead of depriciated value. So say a home theater system thats $5000 and 4 years old you get $5000 to replace it with instead of what its currently worth 4 years later.

 

[Xavier434]

Does anyone know if USAA offers insurance to those in S. Florida? My car insurance is through them. I am a military dependent so I am lucky to have them. I will be calling to ask regardless but it would be nice to know from anyone who uses them beforehand.

Thank you for this info btw. Keep it coming.

 

[amdskip]

Here is a generic form I filled out and dropped off when getting insurance quotes and it seemed to work quite well:

Address
Brick or sided?
Attached to neighbor?
Are you responsible for Insuring your part of the building and contents? Yes
Is there any Association, and if so, what specifically do they insure?
Purchase price?
Actual Mortgage amount?
Sq. ft, not counting basement or garage?
Stories?
Full basement? If so, is it finished off?
Attached garage?
Fireplace?
Central air?
How many baths?
How many bedrooms?
Deck or porch?
Anything updated lately, as far as the wiring, furnace, roof?
Mortgage Company?
A contact name and phone# for your lender?
Closing date:
Contact Information:

 

[JulesMaximus]

Originally posted by: Xavier434
Does anyone know if USAA offers insurance to those in S. Florida? My car insurance is through them. I am a military dependent so I am lucky to have them. I will be calling to ask regardless but it would be nice to know from anyone who uses them beforehand.

Thank you for this info btw. Keep it coming.

You have USAA? Dude, don't bother looking elsewhere, just go with them. I have them for home/auto/life. Excellent company IMO.

 

[Xavier434]

Originally posted by: JulesMaximus

Originally posted by: Xavier434
Does anyone know if USAA offers insurance to those in S. Florida? My car insurance is through them. I am a military dependent so I am lucky to have them. I will be calling to ask regardless but it would be nice to know from anyone who uses them beforehand.

Thank you for this info btw. Keep it coming.

You have USAA? Dude, don't bother looking elsewhere, just go with them. I have them for home/auto/life. Excellent company IMO.

Yes, they have treated me very well with my auto insurance. My car went through a hurricane a couple years ago. The noticeable damage consisted of a couple small dents and scratches. USAA sent out an inspector who authorized to fix the dents and gave me a completely new paint job without me even requesting it because he said that the paint "might" have been sand blasted and just to be sure he authorized it. It was $4000 in work which could have just as easily been several hundred for the removal of dents and touch ups. I love USAA. I just didn't know until this thread that they offered home insurance.

 

[allisolm]

USAA won't issue new homeowner policies in Florida any more unless you're on active duty and get assigned to FL .

http://www.bizjournals.com/sou...007/04/09/daily41.html

 

[JulesMaximus]

Originally posted by: allisolm
USAA won't issue new homeowner policies in Florida any more unless you're on active duty and get assigned to FL .

http://www.bizjournals.com/sou...007/04/09/daily41.html

That article is almost a year old.

I would still call them just to confirm.

 

[allisolm]

Originally posted by: JulesMaximus

Originally posted by: allisolm
USAA won't issue new homeowner policies in Florida any more unless you're on active duty and get assigned to FL .

http://www.bizjournals.com/sou...007/04/09/daily41.html

That article is almost a year old.

I would still call them just to confirm.

The article is from last April because that's when it went into effect and it hasn't changed but he can always call 1-800-531-USAA (8722) and verify.
It's a shame they stopped issuing new policies for most people as their rates and service are both excellent.

 

[MrWizzard]

Uh, oh

Xavier434, you should go and talk to an agent in person. They have a lot more knowledge than most people on Anandtech do. That and states rules and products vary, so what someone might say here could be correct for their state it might not be for yours.
Home insurance is NOT something you want to get a bad product on.

Good luck.

EDIT: Just go into a office and say I am looking for home insurance what should I be concerned about. Try to get a agent that is over 40 years old.

 

[kranky]

There are different "levels" of policies. Most places use the terms HO-1, HO-2, HO-3 and HO-5 or terms which are very similar. An HO-5 policy gives you the most protection. For example, an HO-2 gives you coverage for the specific "perils" named in the policy - if you have a loss and the cause is not one of of the named perils, you aren't covered. An HO-5 policy tells you which perils are specifically NOT covered - and you're covered for anything not spelled out as exclusions. HO-5 also covers your personal property the same way.

No homeowners policy includes flood coverage. If that's a concern, you have to buy that separately.

You want full replacement value coverage also.

Get the highest deductible you can handle, because if you make small claims you'll get dropped and you won't find cheap coverage from another company when they see you have made small claims (and they can find out from the CLUE database).

After you get a policy, be careful if you ever call them to discuss a potential claim. Even if you never file the claim, the fact that you talked about it could be on your record. Let's say you have a water leak and call to ask about coverage. They tell you you have a $500 deductible (for example), and you decide to just fix the damage yourself without filing a claim. They might still put on your record that you had water damage, which is about the worst thing that could happen. These days they get very nervous about a small water problem turning into a giant mold problem which costs $50,000 to correct. So think it through before you call to talk about a potential claim.

 

[JulesMaximus]

Originally posted by: allisolm

Originally posted by: JulesMaximus

Originally posted by: allisolm
USAA won't issue new homeowner policies in Florida any more unless you're on active duty and get assigned to FL .

http://www.bizjournals.com/sou...007/04/09/daily41.html

That article is almost a year old.

I would still call them just to confirm.

The article is from last April because that's when it went into effect and it hasn't changed but he can always call 1-800-531-USAA (8722) and verify.
It's a shame they stopped issuing new policies for most people as their rates and service are both excellent.

That is a shame.

 

[DisgruntledVirus]

Originally posted by: kranky
There are different "levels" of policies. Most places use the terms HO-1, HO-2, HO-3 and HO-5 or terms which are very similar. An HO-5 policy gives you the most protection. For example, an HO-2 gives you coverage for the specific "perils" named in the policy - if you have a loss and the cause is not one of of the named perils, you aren't covered. An HO-5 policy tells you which perils are specifically NOT covered - and you're covered for anything not spelled out as exclusions. HO-5 also covers your personal property the same way.

No homeowners policy includes flood coverage. If that's a concern, you have to buy that separately.

You want full replacement value coverage also.

Get the highest deductible you can handle, because if you make small claims you'll get dropped and you won't find cheap coverage from another company when they see you have made small claims (and they can find out from the CLUE database).

After you get a policy, be careful if you ever call them to discuss a potential claim. Even if you never file the claim, the fact that you talked about it could be on your record. Let's say you have a water leak and call to ask about coverage. They tell you you have a $500 deductible (for example), and you decide to just fix the damage yourself without filing a claim. They might still put on your record that you had water damage, which is about the worst thing that could happen. These days they get very nervous about a small water problem turning into a giant mold problem which costs $50,000 to correct. So think it through before you call to talk about a potential claim.

That is true. Do not ever call your insurance unless you are 100% sure you want to file a claim. Insurance companies will try to start a claim anytime you call. Also 99% of the companies out there that have "licensed adjusters" on call, have them on call but the only way to REACH them is if you setup a claim. There is no way to find out how a claim would affect your policy until AFTER the claim has been settled.

Insurance companies all share information between them. The CLUE database has a lot of information. Do not have a $250 deductible or something low. This is twofold, first as kranky said it prevents you from filing small claims, and second keeps your monthly payments down. Also in kranky's situation with mold most policies will NOT cover ANY mold damage. You can buy special mold coverage in some states though.

BTW a "peril" is a type of loss, ie wind, water, theft, fire, etc. There are only a handfull of perils, but they all have "sub perils" which can be anywhere from 1-2 up to 10+. Oh and for immediate repairs and emergency services (i.e. servpro/water cleanup for a leak to prevent mold damage) are reimbursable.

 

[Xavier434]

Originally posted by: MrWizzard
Uh, oh

Xavier434, you should go and talk to an agent in person. They have a lot more knowledge than most people on Anandtech do. That and states rules and products vary, so what someone might say here could be correct for their state it might not be for yours.
Home insurance is NOT something you want to get a bad product on.

Good luck.

EDIT: Just go into a office and say I am looking for home insurance what should I be concerned about. Try to get a agent that is over 40 years old.

Yes, I know. Much of what I was hoping to find out here is which companies have treated some of the Anandtech members well so I can speak with them first. I also wanted to get some direction from them because it helps me identify which agents might be shady.

That really sucks about USAA....

 

[MrWizzard]

Originally posted by: Xavier434

Originally posted by: MrWizzard
Uh, oh

Xavier434, you should go and talk to an agent in person. They have a lot more knowledge than most people on Anandtech do. That and states rules and products vary, so what someone might say here could be correct for their state it might not be for yours.
Home insurance is NOT something you want to get a bad product on.

Good luck.

EDIT: Just go into a office and say I am looking for home insurance what should I be concerned about. Try to get a agent that is over 40 years old.

Yes, I know. Much of what I was hoping to find out here is which companies have treated some of the Anandtech members well so I can speak with them first. I also wanted to get some direction from them because it helps me identify which agents might be shady.

That really sucks about USAA....

Yea that?s smart; if you go with one of the big, big companies you have a pretty good chance. Every company has people who have bad experiences. EVERY ONE.

If you view insurance as something that you should only use in catastrophic situations then you should be ok. People start using insurance for little 1-3k things and it really messes up the industry if people only used insurance for the really big things rates would be a lot lower.

USAA pulling out is sad for you but it?s a sign that they were not doing things right. Companies usually do that when they were not structured right for the state and it?s losses. They will probably be back someday.

Whatever company you go with be comfortable with moving your auto to them too. Otherwise you are missing out on probably a couple hundred $ savings a year.

 

[Xavier434]

Originally posted by: MrWizzard

Originally posted by: Xavier434

Originally posted by: MrWizzard
Uh, oh

Xavier434, you should go and talk to an agent in person. They have a lot more knowledge than most people on Anandtech do. That and states rules and products vary, so what someone might say here could be correct for their state it might not be for yours.
Home insurance is NOT something you want to get a bad product on.

Good luck.

EDIT: Just go into a office and say I am looking for home insurance what should I be concerned about. Try to get a agent that is over 40 years old.

Yes, I know. Much of what I was hoping to find out here is which companies have treated some of the Anandtech members well so I can speak with them first. I also wanted to get some direction from them because it helps me identify which agents might be shady.

That really sucks about USAA....

Yea that?s smart; if you go with one of the big, big companies you have a pretty good chance. Every company has people who have bad experiences. EVERY ONE.

If you view insurance as something that you should only use in catastrophic situations then you should be ok. People start using insurance for little 1-3k things and it really messes up the industry if people only used insurance for the really big things rates would be a lot lower.

USAA pulling out is sad for you but it?s a sign that they were not doing things right. Companies usually do that when they were not structured right for the state and it?s losses. They will probably be back someday.

Whatever company you go with be comfortable with moving your auto to them too. Otherwise you are missing out on probably a couple hundred $ savings a year.

Actually, I think it had more to do with that USAA is government run and they only have so much money since their customer pool is much smaller. Like another poster mentioned, for every high risk customer you gotta have several low risk customers. There is quite a large military presence in Florida over all. That's just my theory though. I am by no means an analyst when it comes to this stuff.


Anyways, toss me names guys! Who should I contact first?

 

[Demon-Xanth]

I went with AAA, ran me about $680/year, but I save about $160 on car insurance because of it.